Kala's Journal~Newest Project :)

[TanksHill]

I think we need to find her a buddy tho! Seems like she's getting kind of lonely!

And so it begins!!!

 

[glenolam]

Absolutely get her a buddy. Goats do much better when they have a friend....or two...or three....or nine......


If she constantly kicks you can always hobble her. You can buy a fancy $15 hobble like I did or do what I wish I would have done and get some bale twine and heavy fabric and make a hobble out of that.

It doesn't really sound like she needs a hobble, though...it seems like you need to be quicker with stealing the bucket! They do sell covers for some pails that might help with kickers and spillers.

 

[Javamama]

Until you learn her 'about to kick' signs, you could milk into a smaller container and dump it into a bigger one. That way you won't waste much if she steps in it.
And Congrats!

 

[ohiofarmgirl]

wow she looks great! and yep you need a little pal for her.

someone probably already said this but there is a great thread over on the herds site called "kicky milker" - it has all you need to know.

one trick i learned was that if they get hoppy-aroundy on the stand you can use your shoulder to nudge them so they HAVE to keep both feet on the stand.

you'll get the hang of it and pretty soon you'll be an old pro! great work!

 

[Kala]

Thanks guys!! I'll have to check all of those things out. Until then I'll have to work on my ninja bucket skills. I'm at work today and all I miss her already! I think I have the goat bug!!!
She's just so sweet!! I'm gonna start looking for a cheap buddy for her that we can maybe breed later. Might as well dig in deep!!

So if they step in the bucket but don't spill it can u still use it if u strain it? Or better off to just give it to the kitties? And do ya'll recommend letting her stay in a big outside pen all day or can we stake her down somewhere in the yard too with a long leash or something?

 

[Javamama]

I personally wouldn't use it if they put a hoof in it.

 

[glenolam]

If she steps in the bucket I wouldn't necessarily drink it raw, even strained, but don't toss it to the chickens. Strain it and use it for baking or soap.

I'm weary about people who stake out their goats. It can be and is done frequently, but if you aren't there to watch her you'll never know if she's gotten herself all up in a fuss and turned that lead into a noose.

For now she'll be fine in an enclosure and if you want to take her out for walks when you get home that'll do.

 

[Kala]

Milking went much better today!!! Got about a quart jars worth for the whole day after straining so I'm happy with that!! Especially after reading some threads on BYH!!! kicky milker=

She hasen't been too bad yet considering she has never really been milked (first time momma/freshener or whatever you call it). She kept trying to kick and lay down but I just kept after her and eventually she figured out that she needed to just get over it I guess. I'm sure I'll have some bad stories to share later about her being a mean old goatie until she learns who the boss is (MMMMEEEE!!!!!) What is that chant?? *I am the goat master, I am the goat master*

She wasen't really on a milking schedule before because they kept her in with her buck because they had plenty of goats to milk already. So I think once we have her on one (7 and 7) we might be able to get more out of her. My ninja bucket grabbing skills have improved already. And I can officially add novice udder bumper to my resume.

We found that using a canning jar with a mesh top that we use for sprouting works great for straining the milk before we put it into the fridge.

So the agenda for the weekend is to find her a buddy (I'm trying to convince the DH it's in the goats best interest, nevermind me!!) and fortify the stronghold (ie her pen). She keeps getting out into the main part of the barn which is more secure and isn't a big problem yet because we have it all cleared out and no other animals are in there yet. And look at some fencing for a decent pen. I'm leaning away from the tether idea now to glenolam, after seeing the way she acts I can see bad things happening.

Alright off to read more kicky threads on BYH!!!

 

[Kala]

If she steps in the bucket I wouldn't necessarily drink it raw, even strained, but don't toss it to the chickens. Strain it and use it for baking or soap.
I'm weary about people who stake out their goats. It can be and is done frequently, but if you aren't there to watch her you'll never know if she's gotten herself all up in a fuss and turned that lead into a noose.

For now she'll be fine in an enclosure and if you want to take her out for walks when you get home that'll do.

 

[Kala]

So much exciting news!!!

One of my patients at work (who am I kidding he's more like a buddy now!!) told me about his neighbor having nubian goats for sale. So he gave me his number and the guy called me back today after I left a message. And tommorrow we're going to go look at his nubians! So my poor Arowen (we named her after the elf in the Lord of the Rings series because she has elf ears! ) may have a buddy soon! And this guy charges a lot less than what we found our first one for on CL, even though I don't regret buying her because she is really sweet and the people we bought her from was the nicest family you could meet.

We also got the caging in the barn completely done and have the chicken run almost half done and haven't had to spend much at all so far because most of the supplies we found in the barn when we cleaned it out.

And someone from DH work is giving us wire for FREE!!! And someone else has a bunch of canning jars she wants to give us for FREE!!!!!!!!!!!!

I also got my lasagna garden book in the mail today!

DH hasen't been able to drink cow milk for sometime without, well, unwanted side affects. And now that we have bunches of goat milk to drink he has been slowly trying it to see how he feels and he's doing GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!

Today we got 1 1/4 quart which is the most we have gotten from her so far since she hasen't had her kid around and so far milking is going much better than expected! She really is a sweetheart and we figured out that if we layer her grain with hay in the feeder it takes her alot longer to get through it giving us more time before she gets cranky.

And the most exciting news is that we got our electric bill this month down to $48 bucks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We only used 416 KWH this month!! The DH was a little cranky at first when I made him turn off lights and power strips but now that he saw the bill he's a little less grumpy.

Things have been going so well, I'm almost a little afraid of what is going to go wrong soon! It seems like things shouldn't be going so smoothly! I guess I might as well enjoy it while it lasts!!!